Windows 7 - Can't open m2ts file (AVC) using Megui but VD is ok

[lchiu7]

After fooling around with the Windows 7 tweak filters and also making sure m2ts is set to be handled by Haali (this in itself a major exercise in discovery), I can open m2ts files in VDub by opening an avisynth script with directshowsource("bla.m2ts").

I can also render the file okay in graphstudio which shows ffdshow as both the video and audio renderer and when played in graphstudio it plays fine with audio and video.

But when I try to open the same script in Megui, I just get Avisynth script error - could not open as video or audio

Video returned : DirectshowSource: couldn't open bla bla
The system cannot find the path specified

Yet the same script with no changes can be opened in VirtualDub (when I see the Haali icon show up in the tray).

Looks like some strange Megui and Avisynth integration not quite working but I have no idea what it could be so any pointers gratefully accepted.

Thanks

[stax76]

Since the message is 'The system cannot find the path specified' the problem obviously might be using just a filename instead of a absolute path. I assume this file is in the same dir as the script? Maybe you can try StaxRip as I wonder if it fails too, generally it's much more robust than MeGUI.

[lchiu7]

Since the message is 'The system cannot find the path specified' the problem obviously might be using just a filename instead of a absolute path. I assume this file is in the same dir as the script? Maybe you can try StaxRip as I wonder if it fails too, generally it's much more robust than MeGUI.

Not the path/filename in the AVS script is correct since the same script opens fine in VirtualDub. Out of interest I executed x264 with the same script and it processes the file fine so it's clearly a way that megui is calling avisynth in that somehow Haali is not being found or executed.

I can live without megui since it's easy enough to run x264 from the command line but I will give staxrip a check.

[stax76]

Maybe it's because MeGUI interfaces more directly with AviSynth, there are a couple of applications doing this, I'm not sure why but in the case of MeGUI it's known that it breaks certain scripts and certain things work poor like the slow video preview. VirtualDub and StaxRip use mostly the avifile API (VFW).

[Inspector.Gadget]

Is the AVC stream of a type incompatible with the LAVC base of DGAVCDecode? That's what you should use for decoding AVC in Avisynth, given the chance.

[lchiu7]

Is the AVC stream of a type incompatible with the LAVC base of DGAVCDecode? That's what you should use for decoding AVC in Avisynth, given the chance.

It's a bog standard H.264 stream encoded by x264.

And clearly since x264 can open the avisynth script fine and decode/encode the stream, it must be a megui thing that is causing me problems.

[lchiu7]

Not the path/filename in the AVS script is correct since the same script opens fine in VirtualDub. Out of interest I executed x264 with the same script and it processes the file fine so it's clearly a way that megui is calling avisynth in that somehow Haali is not being found or executed.

I can live without megui since it's easy enough to run x264 from the command line but I will give staxrip a check.

Well I tried out staxrip and was underwhelmed - much less intuitive to use than megui. And after I installed it, loaded up all the options etc., it hung on the first avisynth file I passed it. But it had a good benefit. For reasons I cannot explain, once I installed staxrip, megui now worked! Must have been the fresh installation of avisynth that came part of the application.

So I am now back to Vista workflow and am a happier camper:thanks:

[Inspector.Gadget]

It's a bog standard H.264 stream encoded by x264.

And clearly since x264 can open the avisynth script fine and decode/encode the stream, it must be a megui thing that is causing me problems.

My point was that DGAVCIndex/DGAVCDecode are GENERALLY preferable to DirectShowSource for AVC, the exception being some interlaced cases that libavcodec doesn't handle.

[lchiu7]

That may well be the case but directshow was working fine for me under Vista. I will give it a try but in the interim (I did post this in the megui forum).

I tried out staxrip and that was unsuccessful. After going through the installation (which did another avisynth installation) when I opened up the first avisynth script, it hung, just as megui did.

But then out of interest fired up megui again and it worked! So all is well.

As an editorial comment I can't see the enthusiasm for staxrip - found it completely unintuitive to use.

[stax76]

For reasons I cannot explain, once I installed staxrip, megui now worked! Must have been the fresh installation of avisynth that came part of the application.

It does a lot verifications, it was probably something with AviSynth, it's plugins or missing YV12 codec.

Well I tried out staxrip and was underwhelmed - much less intuitive to use than megui.

Usually people tell exactly the opposite, would you mind to explain where MeGUI is more intuitive?

And after I installed it, loaded up all the options etc., it hung on the first avisynth file I passed it.

Did it just freeze or did it show a error message? What did the script look like?

[gorca]

AviSynth doesn't like WMVideo Decoder DMO that comes with WMP 12 at all. This decoder doesn't do that fine of a job with AviSynth nor do the players, like BSPlayer.
Playback of .m2ts or MeGui usage when this decoder was used was almost impossible mission for me. BSPlayer playback was jerky and AviSynth was failing to load .m2ts files because of this video decoder. However I prefer it to ffdshow.

Solution that worked for me, which enabled me too keep Microsoft decoding, was to replace wmvdecod.dll (actual Video decoder file from WMP 12 which is in windows/system32 folder) with wmvdecod.dll from WMP 11 (XP version). Now MeGui handles .m2ts files just fine. Of course in order to do this in Win 7 you need to "take ownership" of the file that will be overwritten.

Edit: replace qasf.dll also.

[lchiu7]

It does a lot verifications, it was probably something with AviSynth, it's plugins or missing YV12 codec.



It was strange since I installed avisynth twice and it worked fine with just x264 invoking the avisynth script and also Virtualdub



Usually people tell exactly the opposite, would you mind to explain where MeGUI is more intuitive?



Well I have deleted it now but from memory

1. Once I installed it and tried to open an avisynth script, kept on getting errors about some crop filter not installed even though I hadn't been using that filter. Then worked out I had to run setup after the installation and that's when it installed avisynth again

2. Each time I clicked something (now this could be a setting I missed) a help screen would pop up that I had to click away

3. The menu structure just wasn't that intuitive - (but then in all fairness Megui isn't too much better) but selecting what codec you wanted just brought up so many options

Perhaps I needed more investment in time to get to know the application.



Did it just freeze or did it show a error message? What did the script look like?

It just froze and all the script had in it was

directshowsource("filename.m2ts")

This was what happened with MeGui until I installed staxrip so you could say, the application did help out :thanks:

[stax76]

1. Once I installed it and tried to open an avisynth script, kept on getting errors about some crop filter not installed even though I hadn't been using that filter

StaxRip has a autocrop feature for what it uses this filter, so it insists that the filter is installed.

Then worked out I had to run setup after the installation and that's when it installed avisynth again

The instructions and messages should be clear. Experienced users might disable the setup for applications already installed.

Each time I clicked something (now this could be a setting I missed) a help screen would pop up that I had to click away

This can be disabled in the settings but it's better to read it or at least skim over it, generally StaxRip is very customizable.

The menu structure just wasn't that intuitive - (but then in all fairness Megui isn't too much better) but selecting what codec you wanted just brought up so many options

It would be worse to mix x264, XviD and DivX, if you want a encoder profile on top level, just rename it removing the pipe character ( | ) from it's name using the Rename button in the profile editor. Most menus are fully customizable, including the tree structure, some have a menu editor with drag and drop and some define the tree structure in the name using a pipe character. The rename feature in the profiles editor does currently only support single selection but I'll add multi select for batch renaming. Some other features in this editor already support multi select.


It just froze and all the script had in it was

directshowsource("filename.m2ts")

Maybe you can post the media info for this file and tell me exactly which filters dshow uses to build the graph, you can see this opening the file in GraphStudio. Some source filters and decoders are causing problems with the autocrop filter, you could try to disable auto crop either in the options or simply uncheck the crop filter in the filter list.